Lost Memories
by Drmethilon
Summary: An alchemist manages to escape from a testing lab, only to find himself unable to remember anything about his past life. Will he manage to regain his memories or will he never be able to find out about his past? WARNING: May contain scenes of gore and mild language.
1. Chapter 1

**Blood and destruction**

The inside of a half-destroyed room. Blood decorated its walls, alongside the cracks and holes, that where possibly caused by something of high explosive power. Human corpses, mostly parts of them, were scattered across the floor, making it look like the site of a mass slaughter crime scene.

A figure was lying in the center of the room, under what looked like a drawn circle of some sort. Unlike the remains around it, that appeared to be wearing white lab coats, which were now glowing red, it was dressed with some kind of prison uniform, which has been reduced to rags hanging from its atrophied body.

Upon closer inspection, the figure appeared to be male, possibly around his 20s and had probably seen better days. He had long black hair, that were sticking to him, sign he hadn't had a decent wash in ages and his whole physical condition, screamed that he was not eating enough. His face was head first in the ground and be the looks of it he looked pretty much in the same condition as everyone else on the room, aside the fact his body was mostly intact. Suddenly, his right hand started to twitch, as to point that he wasn't dead yet. Then his left hand started to twitch as well and soon his legs and his whole body started to follow suit. First thing he tried to do was to get up, but his body, being all weak and neglected wouldn't listen to him.

After a while however and lots of tries, he somehow managed to get himself in a standing up position. He then tried to open his eyes, but when he did, for some reason he could only see from his right eye. He put his hand to his left eye socket, only to realize that he could feel a hole where his eye used to be. Before he could be surprised by the sudden loss of his eye, another stream of terror passed him as his remaining eye, getting used to the dark, saw him the situation that surrounded him. Too shocked to even screamed, he walked back a few steps, before he felt something touch the back of his foot. He turned around, only to see a decapitated head, staring at him, its face a mixed expression of surprise and terror. The scream, that didn't come out before, finally exited his mouth and turning his gaze away from the direction of the head, he started to run.

_I need to get out, need to get out, need to get out, _he kept screaming in his mind, trying to forget what he just saw and desperately searching for an exit. He touched the surface of the walls, groaning each time he felt blood in it, trying to recognize in the dark, a door, a window, anything to get him out of this wretched place. Suddenly, his hand stopped at the feeling of touching something made of wood and open a more detailed search realized that they were wooden planks. Hope filled him as he realized that the planks, for some reason, were loose and broken and with lots of determination and pulling he managed to finally get them off, revealing a window, big enough for him to escape through.

The moon was shining into the night sky, when he finally managed to squeeze himself through the window and out into the open. Panting from exhaustion and mostly stress, he sat out in the grass, inhaling and exhaling as much fresh air as he could, trying to get rid of that disgusting feeling he felt inside him. He couldn't understand what in the living hell was that place and even more importantly, what was HE doing in there. He decided to think about it after he got as far away from that place as possible.

When he started to feel a little better and less tired, he got up and started running as fast as his hurting feet could carry him. He ran and ran and ran, until after what seemed like hours on the end, he couldn't stand anymore and his feet just basically gave up on him.

_Where am I?, _he thought as he fell to the ground.

_Who am I?, _he thought and his eye closed as he felled into a state of deep sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Fresh Start**

"_What the hell is going on?" Sounded a scream coming from someone_

"_Something is wrong, stop the experiment" another responded_

"_Not yet, we are so close" said a different and heavier than the others voice_

"_It's coming, IT'S COMING! AAAAAAAAAAH" a cry sounded and everything was painted red…._

He jolted out with a scream as he stood up from what seemed like a nightmare. Sweat drenched his forehead and his heart was pounding so fast he thought it would escape from his chest. He tried to remember what happened to him but his memory was still a haze. The last thing he could remember was lying on the ground after exhaustion had overwhelmed him.

Apparently that was no longer the case after taking a look around him. He was lying in a wooden bed in a brightly lid and neatly tied room. Next to him there was a small bookcase which had a couple of books, which seemed to not have been used in quite a while as there were sprinkles of dust covering their covers.

He was just about to get up and explore the rest of the room when he heard someone open the door. He turned his head around only to see a small girl entering inside. The girl looked to be around the age of twelve, with big green eyes and had her chestnut colored hair tied in identical long ponytails that touched the blue sleeveless dress she was wearing.

"Hey Mister, are you finally awake?" she asked when she noticed him staring at her.

Before he could ask her where he was, the girl turned around and started screaming "Daddy, come here, the wounded person has finally woken up" before she turned back at him, showing him her white sparkling teeth in a massive warm smile. He then heard steps and a while later saw a man appearing at the doorway.

"Alice, how many times do I have to tell you not to…., oh I see you are finally up" said when he saw him. The man was around his mid-40s, was wearing a dark green shirt, black shorts and a pair of sandals. He was wearing glasses and like his daughter had chestnut colored hair but had brown colored eyes.

"How are you feeling?" asked the man in a kind voice "does it hurt anywhere?"

"N…No" he said feeling his throat sore, which resulted in him cough a little.

The man noticed that and asked his daughter to bring a glass of water. The girl nodded and left the room. She came back a while later with a tray that had a glass of crystal clean water with a straw in it. Her father took the glass from the tray, asked the patient to stand up a little and offered him the glass.

"Drink slowly and steady" he said as he put the straw in his mouth. The feeling of the water slowly refreshing his dry throat made him a little better, as he didn't realize how thirsty he was at this point. When he finished, the man took the glass and placed it in a commode that was next to the bed.

He suddenly started to feel very sleepy and lay again on his bed. As he felt his eyeball getting heavier by the sleep, he muttered a quiet "thank you" and without knowing if the man heard it or not, he fell again in a deep sleep with no dreams.

When he woke up again, he realized by the amount of light that was coming from the window next to him, that it was now afternoon, meaning that he was sleeping for a couple hours. Since he didn't feel sleepy anymore, he decided to take a look around the room to pass some time. After he took his sheets off and put his feet in the ground, he got up and walked towards the bookcase.

He picked up a random book from the top shelve and examined it a little. "_Alchemy: Basic circles and training" _was imprinted at the front cover of the book. He opened it at a random page and saw some words written below a circle. "_Alchemy has 3 stages, construction, deconstruction, reconstruction. A successful alchemy requires the knowledge of these 3 factors and the Law of the Equivalent Exchange. It comes without saying of course that without a proper circle and the necessary skill any alchemy is bound to fail, whether the person has knowledge of the factors or not"._

He was so focused on reading the book that he didn't notice a pair of feet slowly coming closer behind him until it was too late.

"Hey what are you reading?" said a childish voice.

He was so shocked when he heard the voice that he nearly dropped the book he was holding. With his hand on his chest he turned around, only to see the small girl behind trying to hold back her laughter.

"Jeez Mister you get scarred so easily" said the girl in a mocking tone before she couldn't hold her voice and started laughing.

The "Mister", relieved that it was just the girl and a little embarrassed because he actually got scarred by her, let out a little chuckle before he put the book back in its place.

"Wow, you actually can laugh" said the girl in a fake tone of amazement.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a laugh, but yeah I guess I can laugh" he said and they both started laughing. As they laughed he felt inside him something that really warmed him inside.

"Anyway" he said when they finally stopped laughing, "Is there anything I can help you with?" he finally asked her.

"Yes, as a matter of fact there is something I meant to ask you since dad first brought you in" she said in a serious voice.

Her serious tone suddenly worried him a little. What was she going to ask? Maybe she wanted to know who he was or he ended up here. Or maybe she didn't trust him completely and wanted to set some rules. He couldn't really blame her. He was the stranger that all of the sudden was in her house and damn right she wanted some answers.

After he took a long inhale of fresh air and then exhaled it, he got ready for whatever she had in store for him.

"Okay" he finally said "tell me what you wanted to say to me".

"Well" she said a little embarrassed, "are you…" her chicks getting a soft pink color "are you…"

"Yes?" he said, preparing for the worst.

"Are you…" she said a little quieter this time. Silence rules for a minute or two before she suddenly screams through the top of her lungs "ARE YOU A PIRATE?"

"Huh?" was all he could say, his mouth half open in surprise.

"I mean" she said while playing with one of her ponytails "you have long black hair, a beard and you are missing an eye, so doesn't that make you a pirate?" she said her chicks getting redder and redder the more she talked.

"I…" he started to say

"What is it?" she asked and then her face brightened "are you saying you really are a pirate, with a ship and a crew and a hidden treasure map and living the pirate dream?" she finished looking at him with her green eyes wide open in awe, sparkles coming out of them.

He tried to say something, but the puppy look she was giving him, wouldn't let him say anything. He was feeling nice all right for her trusting him, but now he didn't know what to do. He didn't want to say she was wrong and make her sad.

Besides, he didn't have memories of his past life, so what if she was right? What if he actually was a pirate? Maybe he docked here with his crew and somehow he got lost or kidnapped? It was a ridiculous theory, but if he couldn't prove it wrong, meant it could also be true.

Thankfully, he didn't have to answer as her father suddenly open the door and told her that it was time to go to sleep.

"But dad I am not tired yet" she defended herself but a yawn from her mouth instantly betrayed her.

"You look like you could use some sleep, young lady and I won't take no for an answer" he playfully nagged her.

She looked at her "pirate savior" for help, but she only got a nod of approval from him, so she decided it was best to go sleep for now.

She nodded to her dad and exited the room, she then turned to her friend one last time said "Arrrrrrr, good night mate" in a pirate manner and proceeded to go back to her room.

Her father watched her until she went inside her room. When she closed the door, he turned his eyes and looked at his quest directly.

"I don't think I had the time to properly introduce myself" he said without losing eye contact" My name is Jack Clayton and I am the town's doctor, the little girl you just talked to was my daughter Alice. I am sorry but I didn't catch your name, after all I couldn't find any ID on your body to identify you.

He should have expected that. After all a suspicious person like him with rags and covered in blood is something out of the ordinary.

"I wish I could tell you" he finally said, deciding to be straight with the doctor, "but I can't remember anything about myself or my past"

The doctor still seemed to think he was hiding something, but he probably left it aside because he then said: "Yeah, you were probably attacked by thieves or bandits that left you to die in the wild. You also had wounds on your head, which means that you probably suffer from amnesia caused by the trauma caused to you physically and emotionally" he concluded and turned around to leave. "Well, I will you to rest now, you could use a little sleep" he said about to close the door.

"Wait" he said making the doctor stop what he was doing.

"Yes?" he asked, turning to him "you need something?

"Well, I just wanted to thank you for saving my life and taking care of me, even if you didn't have to and I would like to pay you back, but I don't have any money so…" he said looking to the floor nervously.

"Don't worry about money" he interrupted, "I don't really need them. Helping others is what I do and take pride in that. But if you are adamant on paying me back, I could really use an assistant around the office. I am not as young as I used to be, so your help would be much appreciated"

He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. Not only did he got taken care for free, he was also offered a job offer, in the same day!

"Yes" he said with a happy tone "I accept your offer and I will do anything I can to be of assistance to you"

"I am glad to hear that" the doctor said with a smile on his face "I pay really well, so you won't regret it and you are welcome to stay here for as long as you like"

"Thank you sir"

"Good and before I forget you will also need a name. It would be awkward to have a nameless assistant." He said and then went into a deep thinking state. After a few minutes, he finally got an idea "How about we call you Eric? It's a nice name and it's pretty easy to remember"

"Eric sounds good" he said with a smile on his face

"Okay then, from now you will be called Eric" he concluded and it was like his voice was a little too emotional than intended.

"Well it's starting to get late" the doctor said "time to go to sleep. Goodnight Eric"

"Goodnight Boss" Eric said and he lied down in his bed

The doctor closed the door and with the sound of his steps fading, he was finally gone.

Eric couldn't believe. Just yesterday he was a man with no life, no past, and no name. But now, he had a second chance and a second name to start anew.

With those thoughts in mind, Eric went to sleep, his dreams filled with hopes of the future.

**A/N: Greetings** **readers and fellow writers. My name is Drmethilon and this is my very first fanfic. First I would like to apologize for the short length of the first chapter but since this being my first time, I really didn't know how long to make it so to make up for it, I made the second chapter extra-long so I hope you will forgive me. Anyways I will try to update chapters weekly, so look forward for more chapters of Lost Memories, as right now I am on fire to really make this happen. Of course, any reviews, advices or even follows from fellow writers are mostly welcome, but hey it's your choice to do what you want, so Peace out and I hope to hear reviews from you soon.**

**P.S: I DON'T OWN FMA OR FMAB, THEY ARE THE WORKS OF THE MAGICAL JAPANESE COW THAT MADE THEM AND I ONLY OWN MY OC'S.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Threatening his peace **

_2 Months later_

"Eric" said a voice, but no response came

"Eric" the voice repeated, still with no response

"ERIC" the voice said louder and a response came this time

The man in question was sitting on a chair near a desk, reading something. He had long black hair, tied in a ponytail and a small beard that covered his chin. He was wearing a white top, brown baggy pants and white socks. His skin was white with the addition of some scars and he had blue eyes, or more accurately eye, since there was a brown eye patch covering his left one.

"What is it Alice?" he calmly asked, without taking his eye off the book, the owner of the voice, which was none other than a little girl.

"I need your help with something" Alice said in a pleading voice.

Closing his book, Eric sighed and finally looked at her. "What did you break this time?"

"Hey I didn't say I broke anything, why do you always assume that?" Alice said in an annoyed tone, with a little embarrassment.

"Because, every time you need my help, it's when you have broken something" Eric said in an assured tone, looking straight at her eyes. The comment made the girl blush a little, but he knew she wasn't about to admit defeat yet.

"And what about you?" Alice accused, pointing her finger at him. "You are no better. Every time you read a book, you are on your own little world and won't respond to anyone when they talk to you. You… You bookworm!" she finished with a victory smile on her face, for the new nickname she found for him.

_And now to wipe it out of her face_, Eric thought and an evil grin appeared on his face.

"Well, since I am just a useless bookworm and you are such a smart girl, enjoy trying to fix whatever you did on your own" he said in a mocking voice and proceeded to reopen his book.

The smile disappeared from the girl's face and she immediately started to apologize for her behavior while begging him to help her with her issue.

_Eric: 1 little Brat: 0 _Eric thought and when she finally stopped ranting, he asked her what she needed help with.

"Wait here" she ordered him and left the room. She came back a while later with a small plastic bag in one hand and what looked like a handle in the other one.

"Are these all the pieces?" Eric asked the girl as he took the bag and the handle from her. She nodded yes as he placed them in the desk in front of him.

Eric opened a drawer and took out a pen and a piece of paper. He put the paper in the desk and started drawing something. After a minute he finished and placed the contents of the bag, which were mostly glass and the handle on top of it.

With a deep breath, he placed his hands in the part of the drawing that was still visible. Blue alchemic light suddenly erupted from the paper and engulfed the pieces on top of it. When it finally faded, there was now a hand-held mirror with a silver frame around it.

"Wow" Alice said and picked up the mirror "no matter how many times I see that it's still amazing, what you said it was called again?"

"It's called alchemy" Eric explained to her. "I use the tectonic power produced by the earth and by drawing a circle I am able to do a transmutation which…..

"In simple words please" Alice interrupted him.

"Basically" Eric said a little irritated "with the help of a circle and some mystic power poof alchemy happens and the mirror is fixed"

"Interesting" she said as she weighted the mirror in her hand "do you think I could learn this alchemy stuff?"

"That depends" Eric said trying to hold back his laughter "can you read books without falling asleep a minute later?" That caused Alice to frown.

"On a second thought, I think I will just stick with you doing it for me" Alice said and then proceeded to exit the room.

"Hold on" Eric said in a rough tone. Alice shuttered at that and turned to face him "where do you think you are going?"

"To put the mirror back in its place" Alice said in a low voice.

"I don't think so missy" Eric said and he smiled in a sadistic way, when he saw Alice's terrified expression "even though the damage is fixed, I can't let you go unpunished"

When Alice heard that she tried to run, but Eric was faster than her and lifted her up by the shoulders (he removed the mirror from her hand first of course)

"Let me go, you pervert" she said and tried to escape Eric's grip

"Resistance is futile, little one" Eric said, the sadistic smile getting bigger on his face "now stop being a chicken and accept your punishment"

"IM NOT LIT…." Alice began to say, but was soon overwhelmed by a wave of laughter as Eric started tickling her armpits, her sides and basically every ticklish spot in her body

"S… stop don't t… tickle me" Alice said between waves of endless laughter, "It's t… too much"

"I will not stop until you say you are sorry and promise you will never do it again" Eric said loudly enough to be heard through the constant laughter.

"O…okay I am s…sorry, I p…promise n…not to do it a…again" Alice said with tears running from her eyes after so much laughing

Eric finally deciding to accept her apology (he knew damn well she would do it again), he stopped tickling her and let her down on the floor.

"That was mean" Alice exclaimed, breathing hard after the intense tickling.

"Don't do the crime if you can't handle the punishment" Eric said raising his shoulders.

Alice didn't answer; she just took the mirror and went to the door. She opened it and stood there like she was waiting for something. "Eric?"

"Yes?" he asked her

"T…Thank you for helping me" she said, with a pink tint on her face, her hand playing with one of her ponytails

Eric smiled at that adorable display of hers and decided to reward her a bit "You know, I think I will make stew for dinner tonight" he said pretending to think.

The minute he said the word "stew", Alice's face brightened and a big smile formed in her mouth. He could have sworn he saw sparkles coming out of her eyes.

"Yay we are going to have stew, the best of all foods" she said singing and exited the room, half dancing and half walking.

When she closed the door, Eric leaned in his chair and stared on the ceiling, with the smile still in his face. He couldn't believe that 2 months ago he was just a nameless person suffering from amnesia, with a dirty face and rags for clothes and now thanks to a certain doctor he had a name, a roof under his head and even a job with a generous pay. Even though he wanted to help the doctor for free, he insisted that he paid him to work as his assistant and wouldn't take no for an answer.

Of course even though he was an assistant, the doctor used his help only for patients who lived near the house and he went alone for the ones living away from here. He knew that it wasn't that he didn't trust him, in fact he trusted him long enough for him to look after his daughter. As for his memories, nothing came back in his mind with the exception of some skills like cooking and alchemy. It was funny to think that he couldn't remember his own name but knew how to make tons of food he never heard about.

As for alchemy, apart from fixing Alice's mistakes, he used it to transmute different things such as pills and bandages when the medical stock was running low or removing blood stains from the operational room in the back of the house.

Life sure was nice at the village of Madrigal in Creta, "where the villagers are friendly, the air is clean and there is no crime", at least that's what the welcome sign said which was mostly true.

Eric stopped daydreaming and took a look at the clock in the wall. It was still 7 o' clock and the doctor would be home from his trip at 9, meaning he had only 2 hours to get dinner ready. He got up from his chair and exited the room, rushing down the stairs on his way to the kitchen. It was small, but it was more than enough for a family of three. He lightened up the cooking range and started to make the stew. He screamed for Alice to help him set up the plates. By the time the doctor had arrived home, the table was set and dinner had been served.

"I am home" Dr. Clayton said as he entered the house.

"Welcome home, doc" Eric said as he took the doctor's coat and briefcase "did the operation went well?"

"Yep, Miss Simons has given birth to 2 healthy boys" the doctor said with a smile on his face.

"Wish I could have seen that" Eric said as he hanged the coat in the small closet "a birth is something truly amazing"

"Indeed it is" the doctor finished and he started looking around "where is Alice?"

"Daddy, you are back" a voice said and with lighting speed jumped to the doctor

"Hello, princess" Dr. Clayton said as he hugged his daughter and started flooding her with kisses "I missed you so much"

"Me too daddy" Alice said in a cheerful tone "and guess what? We have stew for dinner!"

"So that's what smells so fine" the doctor said sniffing in the air "well I am starving so let's eat"

"Okay" both Eric and Alice said and proceeded to sit in the table

"So Alice did you behave yourself while I was gone?" Dr. Clayton asked as they were eating

Alice who had stuffed her mouth with stew, nodded yes as she swallowed and ate another spoonful of food

"Relax Alice no one is going to steal it from you" Eric tried but to no avail to the hungry girl as she literally devoured everything around her.

Eric couldn't help but smile as they were all eating together like a normal family. At that moment he realized that he didn't care if he ever got his memories back as long as he could spend the rest of his life living in peace with the people he had come to love as his family.

Unfortunately, fate had different plans for him.

A week later, Eric was returning home after shopping supplies for tonight's dinner. It was Alice's birthday today so he was going to make a homemade birthday cake for her. He had just arrived home when he noticed that the door was open, which was strange considering how cautious Dr. Clayton was about security. A bad feeling overwhelmed him and made him run straight inside the house, only to find chaos around him.

There were broken pieces of furniture, ripped off pictures of the family on the floor and droplets of blood leaving a trail all the way to the kitchen. Eric screamed for Doctor and Alice, but he didn't get any response. He went upstairs and searched their rooms but there was still no sign of them. Then, with a mix of fear and curiosity, he decided to follow the blood trails to the kitchen. What he saw there was something so disgusting that made him threw up.

In the table, where they have shared so many meals and conversations was now a map of Creta, with a red circle to the part where the village of Madrigal was spotted and a detached human finger glued in a pointing way to a certain spot of the map. Next to the map, was a note with the lines _Come get us _written in blood on it.

_Why _Eric thought as he fell to his knees, his legs too shaky to hold him up anymore _why this keeps happening? What did I do to deserve this?_

**A/N: Hello there fellow FMA fans and welcome to another chapter of Lost Memories. You are probably wondering where the hell the Elric Brothers are and why I haven't show you Ed's shirtless form(don't pretend you haven't imagined that, I know you have). Don't worry; the brothers will make an appearance after I have finished with Eric's side story. Join us next week as Eric comes face to face with the kidnappers of his family. Till then Peace out and Stay Flamin-Drmethilon**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Rescue**

The sun was shining brightly in the sky and its light illuminated the small houses that were the biggest part of the village of Madrigal. The people outside were strolling in the streets, most of them being farmers returning to their home or housewives making small talk about the events of their day. Elderly men were sitting in the coffee shops, playing chess and remembering their youth while sipping the warm liquid from their cups. Children were playing in the alleys, screaming and laughing as the rays of the sun warmed their little bodies.

Everything seemed so peaceful and quiet, but that kind of feeling was the last thing in Eric's head right now, as he was running in the streets of the small village. His mind was clouded by sorrow, for what happened to Doctor and Alice and anger, for his inability to prevent it.

He couldn't believe this was real. Just a while ago they were preparing to celebrate Alice's birthday. Dr. Clayton had taken the day off and Alice was so thrilled about her birthday she was hopping around the house with a big grin on her face. It was kind of irritating and cute and the same time and the fact she hadn't broken anything in the whole week, much to Eric's surprise, only made her more hyperactive than normal.

Remembering that brought the traces of a smile in Eric's face, only to disappear quickly as he reached closer to his destination. He exited through the village's gate and made his way to the path where the map on his hand showed to.

Long ago, Madrigal used to be a thriving mining town, with veins filled with coal and other useful substances. This has caused the construction of lots of mines and many people looking for work came to the town in waves. Madrigal saw an age of flourishing as the town also turned into a popular tourist hub and it grew larger and larger by the day. But all things come to an end and when the veins were finally dried and the people left for someplace better, the town turned to a village, becoming a shadow of its past, its old residents still clinging to the good times.

Eric was standing in front of the entrance of one such mine. The entry was boarded with wooden planks that had turned rotten from their time passed in the open. An old mining cart and some rusty pickaxes lay beside the entrance, like guards protecting a long, abandoned secret.

He went closer to the entrance and removed a piece of chalk from the back pocket of his baggy pants. He then drew a transmutation circle in one of the most intact planks and placed his hands on it. The familiar blue light started glowing and deconstructed the planks revealing the way inside the mine.

The smell of closure engulfed the air as the way to the mine was now open and darkness spread throughout it. Eric, realizing he needed a light source in order to proceed, used his chalk to draw another transmutation circle near the broken planks. When the light was gone, a small wooden club was in place. He picked it up and using a lighter from one of his pants many pockets he lit it and with a light source now in hand, he made his way to the inside of the old mine.

The air was heavy inside it as Eric carefully walked past the scarred rocks surrounding him. Moisture covered the ground, making it slightly slippery and spider webs were hanging from the ceiling, which in addition to the never ending darkness gave the whole mine a spooky appearance. The dim flame of the torch lighted the multiple scars on the surface of the rocks, sign that once this mine was rich with minerals but no more. Eric continued his way, torch in one hand and map in the other, getting deeper and deeper into the heart of the mine.

Eventually, he reached some sort of circular hall, surrounded by a network of tunnels, old railroad tracks crossing through them. Eric stopped there and took a closer look at the map. The kidnappers have left for him not only the location of their hideout, but also its schematics, which were on the other side of the map he took from the table of the Claytons house. He knew that it was a trap to lure him, but he wouldn't leave behind Doctor and Alice, especially after what they did for him.

He tightened his grip around the map and with a determined look on his face; he crossed the tunnel that led to his family and friends.

Inside the tunnel was thankfully easier to breathe and the lit torches on each side allowed him to see what was around him. When he finally reached the exit, he was surprised to see what was in front of him.

According to the map, the place he was standing at now used to be where the mining shaft once stood. The miners would use the elevator there to lift the heavy equipment that couldn't fit through the tunnels. Eric was astounded to see the so called machine, since he had only seen pictures in books and this one seemed to be functional, despite the fact it was abandoned years ago. That explains why all the ground entrances were still boarded up and how he didn't meet anyone on his way here. However he couldn't see anyone here, making him wonder where the kidnappers where.

His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden noise to his left. He turned around to see two figures, one small and one large tied up on the wall. His eye widened as he recognized them.

"DOCTOR, ALICE!" Eric screamed as he run towards the figures.

The small girl turned and looked at the one-eyed man heading at her. Tears started running from her eyes as she saw him.

"ERIC" she screamed, waking up the doctor who was unconscious next to her. His eyes widened and he also said something but it wasn't what Eric expected to hear

"Stop, don't come any closer" he said in a weak voice, causing Eric to stop and look at him with his mouth open in shock.

He was badly beaten up. His clothes were ripped, showing parts of his body covered in bruises and cuts and other nasty injuries. His face also was in bad shape with his right eye swollen, his lips bruised and Eric was sure that he was missing a couple of teeth.

But what really shocked him was when he looked carefully at the doctor's left hand. Apart from the several bruises and cuts in it, there was dried blood at the vacant spot where his index finger used to be.

_Those bastards cut his finger off _Eric realized as he remember the human finger pointing on the map. _What kind of monster does that?_

"Who…" Eric said his body and voice shaking from anger "WHO DID THIS TO YOU?"

"Oh, that would be us, Mr. Alchemist"

Eric turned to see three silhouettes coming out from the elevator. They were all males, around their 20s or 30s, wearing the Cretian military outfit. The first two were apparently twins, since their facial features were very much alike, with their long red dirty hair and brown eyes, both of which had long swords strapped in their belts. The other figure, which appeared to be the leader, was also wearing the same military uniform, with the exception of the jacket and had the same red hair but shorter than the other two and eyes the color of black. Unlike his brothers, he appeared to be unarmed.

"Who the hell are you?" Eric furiously asked, his eye still focused on the mysterious newcomers, even though he had a good idea who they were.

The leader spoke, his voice in a cold tone "didn't you hear me before? We are the ones who did this" he finished, his finger pointing at the doctor.

"Yeah, after all we needed something to _point_ the way" one of the brothers said, he and his twin laughing at the sick joke.

The leader gave them a cold stare and the laughter suddenly stopped. Both of the brothers stared at the floor, their hands playing with their sword's strap.

He turned to Eric, his black eyes locked to his blue one. "Yes, it was us that took your precious family and brought them here" he said in the most natural voice possible.

The one-eyed man was furious at how casually this man was saying something so horrible. He would punch him straight in the face but he needed some answers first.

"Why would you do this" he shouted, unable to control his voice "they didn't do anything wrong, they are innocent"

"No one is innocent in this world. Everyone has something to hide and you and the doctor over there aren't exceptions" the red-haired man said with the same expressionless voice. "The contract was supposed to involve only you, but I don't mind getting rid of two worms on the price of one".

_If he said contract that means someone out there wants me dead._ Eric thought. _Okay maybe I deserve it, but not doctor or Alice, they did nothing wrong._ In his mind, came memories from the 2 months he passed with the Claytons. The man he knew was a nice doctor and a good father, who took a stranger like him and treated him with respect. No way in hell was he going to let some asshole treat him like dirt.

"You are nuts". Eric said with confidence in his voice "The doctor is one of the nicest men I know and he wouldn't even harm a fly". A smile appeared on his face. "As for me, I have no memories whatsoever of my previous life, but I am not planning to let you go unharmed for causing pain to my family" and with that he raised his fist and stroke a blow to the man's face.

Or so he thought. The leader easily evaded the hit and kneed him in the side. The force of the hit caused him to be launched a good distance sideways, finally landing hard on the ground.

Eric felt his breath getting heavier and excruciating pain shot to the place where he got kicked. If he didn't know better, he would have thought the guy had auto mail limbs.

He thought that he would hit him again but much to Eric's surprise, he just stood there, watching him.

"I don't really care if you believe me or not, since you will both die anyway". He said and turned his back at Eric.

He grabbed a chair from the room and sat there, his eyes still gazing Eric. "Jacob" he said turning to one of the twins, who had stood quiet the whole time. "I will leave this one to you, don't screw up"

"Of course not Big Brother" Jacob said with a big grin on his face as he unsheathed his sword, his eyes looking hungrily at his pray. Before Eric could register that, he suddenly jumped at him.

Eric rolled out of the way and barely dodged the sword as it struck the ground with great force. Before he could think he was in the clear, the man turned and with inhuman speed, he sliced Eric's shoulder.

Eric aimed his foot at his opponent's stomach but missed as the man stepped backwards. Eric took advantage of his enemy's retreat and using his chalk, quickly drew a transmutation circle and activated it. Blue alchemic light shined and rocks of different sizes flew towards his opponent. Jacob however managed to easily avoid the rocks and charged Eric. Eric blocked him with a sword he was able to transmute while Jacob was distracted by the rocks.

For the next few minutes, all that could be heard were the sound of swords clashing and panting, as the two men kept fighting and fighting, the one trying to overpower the other. Eric was surprised he was able to hold his ground against such a skilled swordsman, but he was starting to get tired and the wound in his shoulder wasn't exactly helping him, but at least judging by the panting and the sweat coming from his opponent, he wasn't the only one reaching his limits.

Just as he thought he might have a chance at winning, a sudden pain in his leg caused him to scream and turn around. The other twin had stabbed him in the knee, the same sadistic grin as his brother on his face.

"Hey that's cheating" Alice screamed, trying to get out of her bounds.

"The world isn't always fair, young girl; you either live through life's cruelty or die because of it" the leader explained, his eyes still focused on the deadly battle.

Eric was at a major disadvantage here. His shoulder and leg wounds, in combination with his fatigue, considerably slowed down his movements and the fact that his brother was now assisting him gave Jacob a power boost and the two of them started rapidly breaking through Eric's defense, adding small cuts to his exhausted body.

Eventually, Eric's sword fell apart from the constant punishment and with two simultaneous kicks to his stomach, he found himself on the ground once more, two swords pointing to his face.

"Now" Jacob said, licking his lips "time to die"

Eric then realized that there was nothing he could do while the sword was lifted up over his exposed neck. He was going to die here, a man who couldn't even protect the people he loved, who couldn't even protect himself.

He closed his eye and braced himself as the killing blow was about to slice his head off, ending his life.

But it never came.

When Eric opened his eye in question, he was surprised to find that the other twin has blocked Jacob, with his own sword.

"What the hell Thomas" the red haired man hissed at his brother, hatred on his eyes "you ruined my perfect killing blow"

"It's not fair" Thomas hissed back to Jacob "I helped with the kill, so I should also get something"

"Why should I?" Jacob mocked his twin "I fought him first so I get dibs on the kill"

"Yeah, but if I hadn't been there, you would have been dead meat by now, so I get to kill him" Thomas mocked and Jacob gave him a death glare.

"I will show you who the dead meat is"

"Bring it"

Eric was dumbfounded at the silly argument between the two brothers that saved his life. It was so idiotic he wanted to laugh, but he was way too tired for that. Something fell out of his pocket and he turned around to see what it was. A couple of seeds, small and white, were now lying beside him. He smiled when he remember who gave them to him, feeling it was an eternity ago.

_He was sitting near the door, wearing his shoes. Alice's birthday was today and he was going to a store to buy supplies for the upcoming party. As he tied the last shoelace and picked his shopping bag, he touched the doorknob and was about to turn it to exit, when he felt a hand at his shoulder. He jumped a little, only to realize that the person behind him was Alice. She laughed at him for being so jumpy and that he should stop being so scared. He muttered something and asked her what she wanted._

"_Are you going?" she asked him, a small grin in her face_

"_Yeah, the party is not going to create itself you know" he answered and turned back at the door._

"_Wait" she told him and searched for something in her pocket._

"_What are you…" he started slightly annoyed but stopped when she brought out her closed hand "what is this?"_

"_Seeds" she said revealing the small white things in her palm "it's a custom of the village to give seeds to a person the day it celebrates its birthday"._

"_Then why are you giving them to me?" he asked confused at the little girl's gesture._

"_Well..." she started, a pink tint appearing on her cheeks "I was thinking since you can't remember when your real birthday is, that you can celebrate it on the same day as mine" _

_She stuttered when she saw the shocked look on Eric's face "I am sorry, I don't know why I said something like that, good luck with your shopping" she said nervously and started to walk away._

_Before she could take a step however, Eric hugged her tightly, tears running free from his lone eye. "Thank you Alice" he softly said to her._

_They stayed like this for a couple minutes before they let go. Eric took the seeds from her hand and gently put them in his pocket._

"_It's a pity to just keep them like this" he said and an idea popped at his head "what do you say we plant them tomorrow and watch them grow?"_

"_Really?" she said and she brought her pinky finger out "pinky promise?"_

_He smiled as he wrapped his pinky around hers "it's a promise"_

He nearly face palmed himself as he remembered what happened. He gave up on life just like that when he had made such an important promise to someone he cared. "_No" _he thought to himself, tightening his grip around the precious seeds and making an effort to stand up "_I can't afford to die now, not until I have kept my promise"_

The brothers stopped arguing as they saw their target standing up, a fire burning in his crystal blue eye.

"Kill him, you idiots" the leader screamed, an angry expression on his face.

The brothers, seeing their usual calm brother angry, quickly came to an agreement

"We can both just kill him" Jacob said, pointing his sword at Eric

Thomas nodded at his brother and they both charged at him.

A smile appeared on Eric's face as he quickly drew a transmutation circle and placed the seeds on top of it. Hoping that there was enough moisture in the room, he placed his hands on the circle and a green light illuminated it. Vines suddenly appeared from the circle and quickly wrapped around the two brothers, immobilizing them in the air. They tried to break through them, but their hands were stuck and they couldn't move them at all.

Eric raised his hands in the air, a victory grin on his face. In the corner of his eye, he saw Alice looking at him with a smile on her face, but the doctor's face still had a sad frown on it.

And a few seconds later he found out why.

He didn't notice the leader wasn't in his chair until he was right in front of his face. Before Eric could do anything, red sparks erupted and a stone fist rose from the ground hitting him hard in the chest. The force of the hit launched towards the end of the room, his back hitting hard on the wall. His facial expression formed into shock as the leader started coming closer to him, but it wasn't because of him actually being an alchemist or the fact that he easily pinned him against the wall.

_It was the fact he did it without even moving his hands!_

The leader came closer to him, hatred and disgust on his eyes, as he grabbed Eric's throat and held him in the air. Eric tried to escape from his grip but it was too strong and his fight with the brothers had exhausted the rest of his strength. He could hear someone screaming his name but he was too lightheaded to recognize it and his vision was starting to blur.

Finally he felt his conscience drifting and then everything went dark.


End file.
